It can be really exciting to start a new blog. You get to decide on
all the details of your site, from the great content you’ll create to
the personal touch you’ll put on your blog’s design. One type of blog
that can be very rewarding to start is a personal blog. With a blog like
this, you share your real life experience in order to inspire or
educate your target audience.

Sometimes, however, it can be difficult to know where to start with a
personal blog. How do you translate your daily experience into
something into quality content without things getting boring? How
personal do you get in your blog posts?

To help you answer these questions, we’re going to take a look at
nine popular blogs in this space and show you what makes them so
successful. This way, you’ll get ideas for how to start a blog based on
your personal experience.

What Is a Personal Blog?

The term “personal blog” is murky these days. Back when blogs first began, they were almost all personal. In fact, many of them dealt with mundane events that no one today would read about. At the time, however, blogging was so novel that people would read about almost any topic. You didn’t have to be very focused or unique to stand out in the world of blogging when you were only competing with a handful of other blogs.

Today, however, lots has changed. The biggest difference is the advent of social media. It’s much easier to share what goes on in your daily life, even if you don’t know how to use a blogging platform like WordPress. Therefore, the types of personal blogs that you saw in the early days of the internet are no longer relevant. Sure, you can start a blog like that, but no one is going to read it, and search engines will largely ignore it.

The personal blogs of today generally overlap with other blog categories. They could be food blogs, fitness blogs, personal development blogs, travel blogs, or even content marketing blogs. So what still makes them “personal” blogs? In our view, the thing that separates these blogs is that they’re highly driven by the life experience and personality of their creators. These aren’t blogs with lots of guest contributors. They don’t feel like reading a magazine.

Furthermore, the content incorporates personal stories from the
author’s life. For instance, instead of just writing a recipe as you
might see on a standard food blog, a personal blog would also include
the story of the first time the author made the recipe for their
children, or how they struggled to use it to impress their future
spouse.

To show you a better idea of what this looks like in the real world,
let’s take a look at some of the most popular personal blogs on the
internet today.J

Our first example is a blog that deals with personal finance. The
author (who goes by “Mr. Money Mustache”) uses the blog to discuss the
frugal practices that allowed him to retire early. He also talks about
what he does with his time now that he no longer has to work for a
living (it turns out he still works, but only on things that excite
him).

While he occasionally has guest contributors write for the blog, Mr.
Money Mustache’s signature wit and ongoing personal experiences with
money drive the blog, making it not only one of the most useful personal
finance blogs on the internet, but also an enjoyable personal blog to
read. You’ll come for the personal finance and stay for the stories.

My Wife Quit Her Job is the story of how Steve Chou and his wife
started an online store that generated over $100K per year. This allowed
Jennifer, his wife, to quit her job and stay at home to raise the
family’s children. The blog blends stories of entrepreneurship with
parenthood, making for a read that’s relatable, useful, and
heartwarming.

Even if you don’t have the same goals as the blog’s founder, the site
can still teach you a lot about starting a business that you can run
from home (or anywhere in the world). As an aspiring blogger, you can
also study the site to learn how to incorporate your family life into a
blog that isn’t just about parenting (though that is a viable option,
too).

Cookie + Kate is a vegetarian food blog. If it just stopped there, it
would still be a valuable source of whole food, vegetarian recipes.
It’s more than that, however, because of the way that Kate, the site’s
founder, has also incorporated stories and photos of her dog Cookie.

Cute dog photos will melt almost anyone’s heart, so using them in
your blog can be a fun way to differentiate yourself. This site shows
that you can do more with pet photos than just create a dedicated
Instagram account. With some creativity, you can use them to create an
entire food and recipe brand.

Nia Shanks’ blog is all about how women can use weight lifting to get
into excellent shape. The blog also aims to help women struggling with
disordered eating and self-image. As the screenshot above shows, Nia’s
image and personality pervade the blog’s content.

Using her name for the blog title immediately brands it as a personal
blog. However, the homepage makes it clear that it’s a blog about
fitness. This is an important point to make with your personal blog. You
need to be clear to your readers that your blog isn’t just a collection
of your random thoughts.

Tyler Tervooren created Riskology to help introverts learn how to
thrive in today’s world. He tells stories from his own life of traveling
the world and taking (smart) risks. The site has grown from stories
about Tyler’s life as an introvert to a comprehensive resource for
introverts around the world who want to embrace who they are in a world
that can feel overwhelmingly extroverted.

Riskology shows how you can take something that’s about as personal
as it gets (your personality) and turn it into an engaging blog. If you
can be this vulnerable in your blog, it will be much easier for you to
connect with your audience.

There are many imitators and spin-offs, but Zen Habits is the
original minimalism blog. Sure, maybe it wasn’t the “first,” but that
doesn’t matter. What does matter is that it’s a longstanding, powerful
blog that has helped readers to live simpler, healthier, more mindful
lives.

Leo Babauta, the site’s founder, has an incredible story. He went
from being depressed, stressed, unhealthy, and dissatisfied with his job
to running a marathon, getting up early every morning, and writing each
day. It didn’t happen overnight, as he’ll be the first to say. Rather,
it came because he was able to slowly change his habits and ultimately
his life.

This is a blog to read whenever you’re feeling stuck writing a post
for your blog. It reminds you to keep it simple, slow down, and just
breathe.

Jen Carrington is a creative coach. She helps creative people turn
their ideas into businesses. Her blog shares how she’s managed to do
what she now helps her coaching clients accomplish. In this way, the
blog both serves as an inspiration to readers while also marketing Jen’s
services to potential clients.

If you’re already a solo professional, then starting a personal blog
like Jen’s can be a smart move for promoting your business. It won’t get
you clients right away, but it can be a useful investment over time for
building your reputation.

Tim Ferriss is best-known for his book “The 4-Hour Workweek,” which
was one of the first books to popularize the idea of an online business
that you can run from anywhere in the world with minimal ongoing time
commitment. While Ferriss continues to write books, he also runs a blog.
The blog began with Tim sharing stories of how he managed to learn
impressive feats in record time.

While most of the content on the blog these days consists of show
notes for Tim’s podcast, you can still learn a lot by looking back at
the posts he wrote in the earlier days of the blog. For one thing, they
continue to be relevant and useful, which is a worthwhile goal for the
content on any blog. Asking, “Will this still help people in five or
even 10 years?” can be a good way to sort your good ideas from your
great ideas.

James Clear is an author, weightlifter, photographer, and world
traveler. He’s also a master storyteller, blending scientific research
and the biographies of notable figures with advice on how to build
powerful habits.

Even though he’s often telling other people’s stories, the blog is
distinctly his own. You’ll find his easygoing yet detail-oriented
personality in each post he writes. James’ blog shows that you can have a
wide range of interests and incorporate them into a blog that still has
a unified theme.

About me

Hi, I started creating websites as being very young, so I have more than 10 years of experience and I want to share with you all the tips you can take to complete your website or get an idea of it. About Us